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Lehigh Heavy Forge Corporation (LHF) of Bethlehem, Pa., is the sole remaining super-heavy open-die forging company in the Western Hemisphere. More than a century old, the company's historic facilities were the birthplace of the modern U.S. defense industry.
In the 1880s, the U.S. Navy wanted to convert its fl eet from wooden ships to iron-clad vessels. They asked what was then the Bethlehem Iron Works to build a forge shop to supply the necessary armor plate and gun tubes, offering a million order to facilitate the construction. In 1887, the Bethlehem Iron Company installed two hydraulic forging presses - one 2,000 ton and one 5,000 ton - along with the appropriate heattreatment and machining facilities to satisfy the Navy's orders. Ever since, the plant has been a vital supplier of critical components to the Navy.
The Bethlehem forging plant went on to solidify its role as an internationally renowned leader in the production of quality forgings. The company dominated the market for large forgings for the electric power-generation industry, producing the forgings for the large hydroelectric plants built near Niagara Falls. The company also produced the axle for the Ferris Wheel of the 1892 Chicago World's Fair. Weighing 56 tons, it was then the largest forging ever produced.
Over the years, several different forging presses were built at the site. The current 10,000-ton computercontrolled oil-hydraulic open-die forging press was erected in 1983. The press continues to be the largest open-die press in the Western Hemisphere. The smaller 3,000-ton press was converted to oil hydraulic in 1998. The name of the facility also evolved with the passage of time in several steps to BethForge, a subsidiary of Bethlehem Steel Corporation. In 1997, Whemco Inc., a Pittsburgh-based supplier of heavy industrial components, preserved the facility by purchasing it from Bethlehem Steel and renaming it Lehigh Heavy Forge. Since the acquisition, signifi cant investments have been and continue to be made...